After the invention of the electric guitar in the 1940s and the skateboard in the 1950s, it was simply inevitable that somebody would combine the two classic instruments of shredding. Now Buenos Aires based duo, Ezequiel Galasso and Gianfranco de Gennaro have created Skate Guitar – a project which recycles old skate decks into something ready to soar again… at least in a musical sense.

As far as teams go, it’s hard to top the two founders of Skate Guitar. Ezequiel has been fascinated with sustainable technologies and is an old-school skater. Gianfranco on the other hand, is a professional skateboarder and a musician recognized in the local hardcore scene for his guitar work in BOD. Ezequiel came up with a way to cut and reassemble old skate decks, creating what they describe as a “fantastic junk – rat – skate – guitar!” It’s the kind of thing you can play surf, punk and yes, hardcore with until your fingers bleed.

As the company aptly mentions, skateboards are meant to take a beating. Part of the charm of their guitars, then, is that they have the scars and scrapes of abuse from long days of skating. Also, a skateboard is built out of 14 layers of laminated maple and designed to support an athlete as they land on it from sometimes astounding heights. The resulting guitars are built to last for a long, long time of rocking – and you don’t have to worry about scraping them up – that just adds character. You’ll find more about the Skate Guitar, including videos of examples in action, on Facebook.

Benjamin Starr

Known in some circles as the most amazing man in the universe, he once saved an entire family of muskrats from a sinking, fire engulfed steamboat while recovering from two broken arms relating to a botched no-chute wingsuit landing in North Korea. When not impressing people with his humbling humility, he can be found freelance writing, finding shiny objects on the internet, enjoying the company of much-appreciated friends and living out his nomadic nature. He is Managing Editor of Visual News. Follow his movements on Twitter: